William Perlman/The Star-LedgerCourtney Lee, speaking to the media in June, had X-rays on his ankle, which were negative.The likely starting backcourt tandem ended Tuesday’s practice with only two good ankles between them, and if that wasn’t enough to make Lawrence Frank reach for the nitroglycerin tablets, it’s only because the Nets don’t have another preseason game until Friday.

Devin Harris rolled his left ankle and sat out much of the session, and just 10 minutes later, Courtney Lee turned his right ankle and was taken off for X-rays, which revealed a sprain. The unwitting instigator in each case was a guy who could actually benefit from their absences.

“Tazmanian Devil over there kind of knocked out two guys today,” Harris said, referring to rookie Terrence Williams.

Harris was injured while he was backpedaling in a defensive transition: Williams stepped on his foot and “My body went one way and the ankle went another.”

Lee, who missed the last four days of work because of a bruised left foot, had the more serious injury. After colliding with Williams in a rebounding drill, he landed badly, his right ankle swelled. Though X-rays were negative, he could miss a few days.

There was actually positive news regarding Eduardo Najera, who practiced for the first time in roughly nine months, because his recovery from a May sports hernia surgery has been delayed by related back problems in the first week of camp.

“Everything is back to normal,” said the veteran forward, who took part in transition drills, adding that the pain in his abdomen and back “is gone.”

“He’s getting his feet wet, (he) brings a lot of energy to it,” Frank said of Najera. “We’ll really welcome Eduardo back. He brings an energy and toughness. Hopefully he can stay healthy, so he can do what he’s done in his career.”

In other words, the coach added, “We can’t be an average intensity team. We have to be a high-intensity, high-effort team that plays with a great deal of oomph every single day. It starts on the practice floor. It’s your habits. You can’t just do it on game day.”

Harris actually seemed surprised that he managed to click with Brook Lopez on three transition opportunities in the first half in Albany Sunday, when the big center outran his defender.

“Brook made it a lot easier for me, running the way he did,” the point guard said. “He opens up lanes, whether I’m running at the basket and picking up fouls or he’s opening up lanes for me to drive in. He’s going to be a key part of demanding the attention away from me.

“You’re going to see a whole lot of teams trying to focus in and remove my driving lanes. I’m pretty sure we’ll see that eventually. I’ll attack it good the way I see it, but as long as my guys are spreading the floor and making shots, my job is easier.”

Alert to widespread suspicions that his league will whitewash its background check of Mikhail Prokhorov, commissioner David Stern told reporters in the U.K. this week that the Russian oligarch will receive a “full and intrusive” examination, and that some foreign investors in NBA teams “have declined to go forward with our process” because “it’s very strenuous regarding financial ability, character and business dealings.”

The Nets still have two road games to play — Friday night at Philadelphia and Sunday afternoon at Boston — before their Prudential Center debut Oct. 13 against the Celtics, but the promotions have begun in earnest.

The team will host “Netstoberfest 2009” at The Rock Wednesday starting at 3:30 p.m. with games and giveaways, and several players will make an appearance on Mulberry Street.

The NBA released the results of its annual survey of general managers Tuesday, and not surprisingly, Orlando’s trade for Vince Carter took first place in the poll of “highest-impact acquisition” with 25 percent of the ballots.